Final answer:
None of the philosophers listed (John Locke, René Descartes, Immanuel Kant, David Hume) explicitly created the view that the mind is merely what the brain does. However, David Hume's skepticism and empiricism might be closest to a materialistic understanding of the mind, though he did not expressly equate the mind with brain activity.
Step-by-step explanation:
The view of philosophical mind that explains that the mind is what the brain does, is known as materialistic monism or physicalism. This view is not represented by any of the options provided (John Locke, René Descartes, Immanuel Kant, David Hume) in its classic form. However, if we are to choose from the given philosophers, none of them specifically stated that the mind is merely what the brain does. Locke, Descartes, and Kant all had varying degrees of dualistic views, while Hume was skeptical of making firm declarations about the nature of the mind.
Among the options:
- John Locke believed in tabula rasa, meaning the mind starts as a blank slate and acquires knowledge through experience.
- René Descartes is famous for dualism, the idea that the mind and body are distinct and separate entities.
- Immanuel Kant also held that the human mind contributes to experiences actively, suggesting a form of dualism.
- David Hume was a skeptic and empiricist who believed that knowledge comes through sensory experiences and was skeptical about claims of the mind that go beyond empirical evidence.
Therefore, it is important to note that the specific idea that the mind is what the brain does aligns more closely with a materialistic view of philosophy which was not the central thesis of any of the philosophers mentioned in the question.